Hidden Mickeys: Part 1

Over a month ago, I wrote about the new Wishing Stars game for the iPhone. Now, while we’d all like to have fun playing a game at Disneyland, we don’t all have iPhones. We cannot afford one, we don’t have access to one, or we have yet to buy one. Bummer! What do you do? Well, how about a game that only requires a book?

I recently had a chance to review both of the Hidden Mickeys (4th Edition) and Disneyland’s Hidden Mickeys (2nd Edition) books, written by Steven M. Barrett. Hidden Mickeys covers Walt Disney World, and I’ve never been there, so I’m going to focus more on Disneyland’s Hidden Mickeys. Since they’re written and organized the same way, it will not make a difference.

Now, I haven’t had a chance to get down to Disneyland yet, so Part 1 of this review will focus on the book itself. I’ve seen the Hidden Mickeys books in stores before, but I’ve always dismissed them as being filled with dry facts. What I didn’t know is that it’s actually a game of sorts, a scavenger hunt if you will.

Disneyland’s Hidden Mickeys covers both parks, Downtown Disney, and the hotels. Although, not every location has a hidden Mickey. But what is a hidden Mickey? It’s exactly as it sounds: it’s a hidden image of Mickey Mouse, usually tucked away in the architecture, in a mural, etcetera . . . usually. It can also be a nod to Mickey Mouse such as his initials, shorts, gloves, shoes, or the ever-popular Mickey head silhouette (one large circle and two smaller ones). Or, it may not be Mickey at all. The term ‘hidden Mickey’ has expanded to include hidden Minnies, Goofys, Plutos, Donald Ducks, and more. A good example is the hidden Eeyore in the queue of the Indiana Jones Adventure (read the first post comment). And then, there are the TONS of fraudulent hidden Mickeys. Folks have gone ga-ga, claiming that every set of three circles is a hidden Mickey (they’re not!). It’s a blurry line when it comes to official and unofficial hidden Mickeys.

The book contains three scavenger hunts (Disneyland, Disney’s California Adventure, and Downtown Disney & the resort hotels) where you and your party are challenged to find hidden Mickeys and score points. You can follow the hunt step-by-step, which may bounce you from one end of the park to the other, or you can use the index in the back of the book to quickly find the clues to any specific attraction. I personally prefer to work in a clockwise or counter-clockwise direction at the park, so the latter would be ideal for me. But, be aware that hidden Mickeys are not all in attractions. They can appear in public areas, too, so skim through the scavenger hunt locations before beginning.

Some hidden Mickeys are easy to spot, and others are really difficult. If you ever get stumped, the answers to the clues are located at the very end of each scavenger hunt. The answers are actually labeled as ‘Hints’ in the books, which threw me off a little bit. Shouldn’t they be ‘Answers’? The answers are also the place to go if you don’t want to play, but would rather just know where the sightings are.

Hidden Mickeys are always being added and removed as the parks and resorts change. If you find a new hidden Mickey, you can report it to the author via his website, Hidden Mickeys Guide.com. Just click on the ‘Contact’ link. If it is a confirmed sighting, your name will be included in the Acknowledgments of the book. If you want to stay up-to-date on the disappearance and emergence of hidden Mickeys, Steven’s website is the place to go.

In the next part of the review, I’ll take the book to Disneyland Park and try it out with family members. I’ll write about some other features of the book such as its familiar size and shape, how well the scavenger hunt worked, how well it was incorporated into our stay, and I will give my final thoughts.

If you’d like to purchase a copy of one or both books, check with your local book store. You can also find them in many online stores, including the publisher’s website: The Intrepid Traveler.

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